Shibata served as the Bowmaker to the Emperor of Japan from 1959 until 1994, when his adopted son, Nobuhiro, was recognized as the 21st in the Shibata lineage and assumed the duties of Imperial Bowmaker.
In Japan, Shibata became concerned that his students were too fixated on merely hitting the target, and were treating Kyudo as a sport rather than a meditative art. He felt they were becoming too competitive.
In 1980, Shibata accepted an invitation from Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche to come to the United States and teach kyudo, and founded the Ryuko Kyudojo ("dragon-tiger archery practice hall") in Boulder, Colorado. Since 1980, Shibata has founded over 25 kyudojos in the United States, Canada and Europe.
Shibata does not rank his students (i.e. there is no belt or dan system), and there is no testing or contests within the school.